For the Girls

Have you ever wanted to ditch your life just for a little awhile? You know, the life where you're being driven to the point of insanity by the sound of kids yelling "Mommy!" and tattling on each other? Or maybe it's the intellectually challenged co-workers that are driving you nuts? Or maybe you always dreamed of what it would be like had you taken that job working on the horse farm after getting out of high school...

When you dream of ditching that life do you also dream of working with AQHA trainers or working AQHA shows? OK? Maybe it's just me....but if it's not just me, then I spent 2 weeks away from my life for you! That's right! You can live vicariously through me!

Are you ready to hear about our adventure away from home? Here goes!

I left home on the 8th of February headed for Jackson,MS. My "trusty" 2003 F250 packed for 2 weeks away from home! Keep in mind the planned activities were as follows:taking pictures,riding,and ring stewarding. So besides having 2 weeks of clothes for those activities in 30 degree weather, I also had to have my lap top,camera,displays,numerous pairs of footwear and hat cans! The back seat was full and I am pretty sure lifting the suitcase that was 100lbs.into the back seat is the cause for the pulled muscle in my back! But no worries-that's why God made Naproxen!

So the 5 hour drive up there went smoothly.Got checked into my hotel room and ate at Whataburger with the event coordinator(Thanks Lana!) of the show I was shooting the next day and then went to bed. Such a waste of the suite I was given too! No wild parties that it definitely could have handled! Bummer.

So the next day I reported to the Fordice Equine Center to take pictures of the Special Needs Horse Show/AQHA Equestrians with Disabilities Show.Wow! What a blessing and fun day! If you ever get to watch or volunteer for such an event,do so! It was a great day for sure!





So after the day was over and 600 some odd photos were taken it's time to hit the road 20 minutes up the interstate to Reunion Farm. But first I check into another hotel! Upon arrival to the farm I was greeted by Shon,Tom's assistant trainer. She gets wide eyed with excitement that I am going to be there 6 days and help them get horses ready for the Dixie National Quarter Horse Show! Either that or her expression showcased her bewilderment of why anyone would want to be away from home that long and to work your butt off for someone else! Who knows but this is my working vacation so let me live it! LOL!

Getting there at 5pm that night didn't leave me much to do except help tack and untack a few and then help with blanket check in two barns. Then it was off to find something to eat and call it a day!

The next 2 days were pretty much identical.Get to the barn at 7:45-8am and start saddling and riding horses. I was fortunate enough to ride 3 a day while I lost track of how many Shon and Tom had to ride! But I know it was a lot! I also started vacuuming the horses that were going to the show. With the temperatures in the 20's and 30's it was too cold to bathe so between grooming,vacuuming and spraying Hair Moisturizer (By Dr. Groom) on them we were able to make all the show horses fairly presentable! Both days ended around 7-7:30 that night and dinner with the McBeath family. (Thanks Holly,Suzy and Jeff!)

Friday am we were blessed with 4-5 inches of snow! It's not supposed to snow in Jackson! It was pretty but boy was it messy! I was asked to get to the barn early that morning to be sure to get pics of the snow at the farm.






After taking pictures of the snow,Tom,Suzy,Holly and I went to watch Holly's fiance Jeff Chapman rope in the rodeo at the Dixie Nationals Rodeo. That was a lot of fun! Calf roping is always exciting and I was also able to say "Hi!" to Zeb Chapman, an old college buddy who was also roping that day.(And yes it's weird to say "an old college buddy".)

By late afternoon when we returned to the barn,it was time to ride and vacuum a few and then a late dinner to end the day.

Saturday was a big lesson day for Tom and Shon with all the clients coming in for last minute guidance on Showmanship,Western Riding and Pleasure. I was doing good to stay out of the way and not get run over! It takes a lot of talent and coordination to maneuver a horse in a pen with 12 people riding and 3 horses lunging!I felt safer to just sit on "my" horse next to Tom and absorb as much as possible!

All the clients who were there that day washed there own horses' tails and legs and coated them with Show Sheen so it would be easier for us to clip on Sunday. Of course there were still a few that we had to wash but it was still a lot easier with the help of the clients! Shon and I thought about ending that long day at dinner at Red Lobster (to celebrate my birthday a few days early) but then ended up going back to the barn to clip a few horses so we'd have less to do on Sunday! It was great to have some girl time even if we did work late that night! It was fun stuff!

Sunday was an easy day! A few lessons for Tom and Shon with the folks who weren't there on Saturday and then Shon and I clipped the remainder of the horses. It was nice to be able to help Shon and hopefully take a load off of her.We tag teamed the horses with her doing their faces while I did legs. I gots skills! This was also the day that we had to make sure the trailer was loaded with all necessary items to set up stalls for 28 horses. That's right! 28!!!! Tack,grooming supplies,buckets,hay bags,hay,feed,supplements,BLANKETS AND HOODS, etc.for that many horses is no easy chore to pack!

It made things easier too that Sunday was when Suzy,Jeff and Holly went to the fairgrounds and got all the stalls ready.All the stalls had to be cleaned out and re-bedded,buckets hung,etc. The backs of all the stalls were wrapped in plastic in order to block the wind.It was supposed to be in the low 20's at night!Plus they had to hang the red drapes,signature color of the TMc barn!

Monday morning was, well a Monday morning! Shon,Suzy and I loaded the first trip of 4 horses at 7am headed for the fairgrounds.Got them there,unloaded and then Suzy and I headed back to the barn for another load only this time I had planned to follow in my truck so I would have it.Well my truck had other plans.It wouldn't crank. Dead battery.After Suzy jumped me off, and I let it run for awhile I figured all was good.I ran an errand for Suzy in Madison and then headed to get fuel.Noticed the gauges weren't working.This can't be good.I left the truck running while I went into the store to pay for my fuel and it shut down. I asked someone for a jump,had it running while I called hubby (5 hours away) and it shut down again!Nice.Aren't you glad you're living vicariously through me?

Through this whole ordeal,I kept thinking about how Tom the "Master of Whoadom" would react.I am pretty sure it would be calm so that's how I tried to stay. "It's no big deal" I kept telling myself, which is what Tom says a lot! So I picked up a book that needed starting after calling hubby again and letting him decide what he wanted me to do.Calm and rational works every time! Long story short,Chuck's company had a crew of guys working in Jackson. They came and took me to get new batteries and ended up taking my truck home that night. Well almost home.It had to be towed the last 100 miles or so.I ended up using Tom's truck and hubby sent his truck up to me via another co-worker so it all ended ok! Calm and rational. Remember that....No.Big.Deal. I was back to the fairgrounds and lunging and vacuuming horses at lunch!

Tuesday was much better than Monday and it involved taking one of Tom's help to the Urgent care to have her feet looked at. Plantar Fasciitis diagnosis and some new shoes and we were back to the fairgrounds for more chores,lunging and blanketing. This might be a good place to point out that there were 28 horses.All of them wore at least 3 blankets and 2 hoods! The owners wouldn't be there until Wednesday and Thursday so it was up to us to check all the straps and make sure everyone was warm enough but not too warm!After helping with 28 my six at home seemed pretty easy!

Wednesday (Happy Birthday to me)I was able to leave my post as assistant stable girl and became "Ribbon Girl"! Sadly there's no superhero suit to go along with this as there should be! This position is highly underrated on the responsibility pole! But alas it was just for the Working Cow and Roping events and most ropers could care less about a silly old ribbon! I know. Shocking! But it was a super fun day and I was able to hang out with some cool chicks! (Monica and Christy- you girls rock!)Later that night Kim,Mary and Robert (part of my peeps at home!) were at the show and took me to dinner for my birthday! That was more special to me than they will ever know!Thanks again guys!

Thursday was the beginning of my Ring Stewarding responsibilities. I worked with 2 guys who are super good at this role,George Kane and John Crabb. They wired us up like Secret Service! I know! Cool,huh!? I was able to work with fine AQHA judges and individuals like Gene Parker,Joe Carter,John Dean,Russ Smith,Pam Scott (whom I love!) and Carla Wennberg.I was in horse knowledge heaven!And the fellow ring stewards were fun to work with! I feel like I made lots of new friends at every turn,from all the committee people and MQHA directors!Everyone was great to work with!Fellowship with other horse enthusiasts is great for the soul!

Friday night was the Freestyle reining! Sitting on the back gate was my perch of choice and although my butt was sore for many days afterwards it was worth it to be that close to all the excitement!

Saturday I ditched the horse show for Tom and Suzy McBeath's last sale at the Dixie National.It was an emotional day for the family for sure.After helping get buyer numbers assigned,I helped run tickets to the sale office from the block for Monica and Laura.Fun girls to work with! Anyways,between running tickets,I was persuaded to take pictures! It was a beautiful day outside for sure! Here a few that I snapped!





By Sunday,after stewarding in the morning, I was just about ready to go home except for that DRIVE home.Two weeks is a long time away from the ones you love.It was an amazing experience to be able to work next to some of the best in their fields of expertise.I was sad to have to say good bye to my new friends but thank goodness for Face Book!

I hope you enjoyed reading about my adventure! It helped me in my journey to compete too since not only did I get to school with Tom and Shon but I got to watch and hang out with the folks I am going to eventually compete with...hopefully!

Keep smilin',ridin' and dreamin'!
E

Living the Dream.Well Part of it anyways!

November and December were filled with training on the trails with my girls,photography shoots, a trip to Vegas and of course the Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays!

Now it's January 2010. This month has been amazing already and it's only half way through! I shot an ACTHA ride in MS on the 2nd. Met some amazing folks! Just returned from the Annual ALQHA Banquet last night and although I couldn't stay for it's entirety, it was a lot of fun too! Of course I met even more amazing folks there as well!

For a moment, let's flashback to 1985 when I lived in California from the ages of 10-18,my bedroom was covered in horse pictures from the AQHA Journal,and other stock horse publications. I hung out with Quarter Horse owners and finally bought my own AQHA gelding,a red dun by the name of Mateo Buck.I never showed in the registered shows. I was lucky enough to show in 4-H and a few Open shows in the timed events, but it was difficult to do much at all without the support of show parents. So I quietly worked in the background and soaked up all I could from the people I looked up to.They were quite a handy bunch for the most part too! But the point is, I have always loved the AQHA. The history, the grit,the versatility and the people. Sure I owned and showed Arabs a little bit as well but the AQHA was still near and dear to my heart.

Fast forward to the year 2000. I found myself working for Bartlett Ranch fitting sale fillies and halter breaking. I LOVED it! I was in heaven! Even managed to get a mention and picture in the 2001 May issue of America's Horse,AQHA's exclusive member magazine! I though I had hit The Big Time!

Present Day: I have married my sweet heart and gave birth to 2 boys. I have joined ALQHA to log my hours in the saddle,ridden on a few AQHA rides,ring stewarded under 6 AQHA judges at 3 AQHA shows,ridden with an AQHA Professional Horseman a few times,and have set goals to eventually compete in AQHA's VRH classes. Whew! And now ladies and gentleman, I am officially doing something I never dreamed would have happened: I AM ON THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS for ALQHA!

It's strange! I didn't want this position but have been asked for over a year to do it by officers and other board members. On the way home last night I had 2 hours in the truck by myself to think about this.What was I scared of? FAILURE! I hate failing and so many times I just refuse to try. I don't like this characteristic in others so why was I willing to accept it in myself? Time for me to BUCK UP!

My grandparents were great at serving! I always admired this trait in them and so did many others. They were passionately involved in a few organizations and made a difference. I always wanted to emulate that! It's such a great example to my boys and maybe,just maybe I CAN make a difference!

To the ladies who PUSHED me into this position I am grateful for the opportunity to TRY! To the others on the board and members of the ALQHA I hope I do not let you down.To my hubby and boys,thanks for understanding why I may be gone a little bit more often...and to the 10yr.old me: LOOK what we're doing!!

So I will end this entry with this: In 2010 if you hear the sound of opportunity knocking or feel that nudge from God,JUST DO IT!


PS-I also have been published for the first time! My picture "Fancy Cowgirl" starring Miss Lena Hernig is on page 140 of the Jan/Feb issue of the Palomino Horse Breeders of America magazine! She's also Miss August in their calendar! Go 2010!

Getting and Staying Motivated

I hear banjos! Oh wait. Hubby is watching Hee Haw on RFD! Whew! I was worried there for a minute!

So it's been raining...deja vu? No. Alabama! Hopefully the rainy season is about over! Of course it's now deer season so that means limited trail riding. With all the rain, my lessons have been more of a miss than a hit and therefore my extra funds are non existent. Hydrabull practice on Wednesday nights is a distant memory! I miss it too!

With the rain,economy,lack of funds,and other life things that take a priority over riding,it's difficult to stay motivated to ride let alone focus on a goal! But there's hope!

I am fortunate to have 2 boarders that ride and want to better their horses. They don't know it but they keep me motivated to ride. It's nice to have folks to ride with! We have decided (although poor Jane hasn't been informed yet!) that we are going to try and keep each motivated through the fall and winter to not only ride but to make our horse better each time we ride. How are planning on doing this? We have a list and a chart! Lists/charts make the world go round right? Ours is a list on the dry erase board located in the hall way of my barn. On it we have obstacles,listed and 4 horses listed. (Hayden,Scout,Pari and Bullseye) After each obstacle is safely completed and the horse and rider feel super confident on it we can check it off!

What do we win? Well we haven't decided on a prize but we know for sure that our horses will be more broke for it and our confidence levels will have greatly risen as well! I think that's prize enough!

Today Lisa and I got SERIOUS! Even before "THE CHART" was made! She had a see-saw and brought it out to add to our bridge, back through L, serpentine, side pass log, drag, gate, car wash, and water/tarp obstacles. We also added a big scary tarp on the fence with (Carson behind it), a feed bag full of AIR to be drug, and a baseball on top of the cone, as well as a rain slicker to be taken off the post, put on and place back on post. In all we had a total of 11 obstacles to work!

We decided to start slow and go back to basics first. We started on the ground and instilled into the horses the WHOA!(Thanks KJ!)We introduced all the obstacles while on the ground first and really worked on them reacting in place! Seemed to work well! After 20-30 minutes of that we mounted up (Lisa even did it from the off side for the first time!) and started with the familiar obstacles first. All went great!

Hayden and I did have a tap or 2 on the back though L but we tried to make up for it by at least doing a decent turn on the haunches out of it! Other highlights for Hayden and I included walking though the serpentine without reins and using seat and leg cues only,successfully putting on and taking off the slicker for the first time, successfully picking up and placing ball on cone for the first time (Hayden is 15.2 so I though this was going to be difficult),traveling over the see-saw no problem! We did drag the log with no problem but Hayden still doesn't like the rope! So our home work is to do more rope work! (YAY!) Our other new obstacle, the "Bag Drag" is scary to Hayden so we will also be having play dates with it!

Lisa and Scout had a great day too! They're planning on competing in the ACTHA Competition at Blakeley in Nov. so I am trying to help her get ready for it. Scout did great on everything but just need more practice in side passing over a log and dragging the log. He did great with the "Bag Drag" but I think the weight of the log and the rope he's not real fond of.

After we rode and had the horses put up, Lisa and I went over "The Chart"! It was fun to check off some of the obstacles and make notes on the ones we need to work on. We also have a list of obstacles we need to make and some that we'll have to travel to a few different facilities to accomplish! Jane is going to be shocked when she sees "The Chart" tomorrow!("The Chart" is pictured below)



Speaking of tomorrow-I am finally going to be able to ride with my BFF! First time in FOREVER! We are going to Magnolia Branch Wildlife Reserve with a few others. I really want to ride Mr. Perfect aka Hayden but after looking at my logged hours and knowing that Bullseye has some wet blankets waiting with his name on them, I will probably take Bully. He has issues with entering creeks, and hills with erosion! He balks,refuses and turns for the hills! It's not fun to ride him when he's like that and I don't feel safe letting 6 yr. old Carson ride him on the trails with holes like that in his training. Of course I did actually look at my logged hours on him and Hayden and WOW what a difference! Hayden has 315 since 10/07 and Bullseye has maybe 100! Hmmm...who's my favorite? So it's not a wonder Bully has some holes in his training! I have been taking advantage of his good nature and expecting too much out of him when he hasn't had the same amount of time under saddle. Not fair of me at all! One of my goals for this fall and winter is to get more hours on him. That's not going to be easy since I so very much LOVE riding handsome Hayden but it's got to be done! I will have to think of it as a journey inside The Journey!

~Get that pony rode and I'll write again soon!~

PS-
Yesterday,Lisa,Jane and I rode at Historic Blakeley State Park. We saw this and had a good laugh.Bullseye was severely disappointed though as he was really hoping to finally get some privacy while going to the bathroom.

Yeah I know...

It's been forever long since my last blog but WOW I have been busy with this "journey". Well sort of with this journey....
3 weeks ago we took the boys to the beach for the weekend. Sounds fun huh? Well it's fun but to go on vacation around here is NOT fun! First you have to find someone who will come in and feed the horses.That's the easy part! We also have 2 English Bulldogs so that means we have to have someone come in and let them outside,feed,and water them,etc. The horses are actually less of a handle! But it was the beach and the boys had a great time!I worked on my journey by catching up on all my horse magazines and studied intently on different training points! That's my kind of vacation!


So just to catch you all up,the last few times I have ridden Hayden on the Hydrabull he has done AMAZING! He's stopping hard on his own,starting to want to turn over and thru his hocks on his own (which we are correcting until he listens to my cue) and even starting to get after the bull QUICKLY on his own! YAY! He's felt really good and it's amazing!

But now I have several new questions since we've reached this level: When do we start on REAL cows? And when do I start another discipline? Remember-I am not on a ranch! I am a stay at home mom! My horse is not exposed to ropes,cows,chutes,gates,etc. on a daily basis!

I did take the opportunity to visit a certain other cutting trainer that I KNOW can help me but have not heard back from him yet....I have not resorted to stalker stage yet but believe me-for this trainer I might just have to! I am blessed to have this caliber of a trainer in the area and I would be STUPID to not ride with him if given the opportunity!

It's been raining like we're in the South or something here...hahaha and riding has been a hit-and-miss thing.Really more of a miss thing,actually.I know there are things I could and SHOULD work on even when it's muddy but it's difficult to convince myself of that! Things like roping the dummy,walking,side-passing,doing the gate,ground-tying,etc. But no,I've been taking care of things in the house.(Sure I have!)

I was appointed to be in charge of gathering items for a silent auction benefiting Storybook Farm in Auburn,AL. for the ALQHA. Little did I know that this was actually going to be a very fun and rewarding experience! Here's a link that tells a little bit about that:http://americashorsedaily.com/twy-this-twail-ride/
That's right! Yours truly was in Americas Horse Daily! I was so flattered and honored and excited! I was even more excited that my donors were able to get so much free advertising! Cool huh!?

So the AQHA Ride/Silent Auction is this weekend! I have been finishing up last minute details for it,packing and trying to convince Hayden that the 7 hour trip up there really won't be that bad! Nor will all the hills and creeks we have to climb and swim through...I guess I need to convince myself first huh!? It won't be that bad and it's all for such a great cause!

Last weekend I had the opportunity to ring steward a 3 day AQHA/PHBA show with some awesome women judges!I love meeting cool,strong women like that! They were a lot of fun and of course I learned more than I thought ever possible! Considering going to a ring steward seminar if it would help my chances of "going pro"! I need the money! This is one expensive dream! Maybe I need to look into getting some sponsors!Hmmm...
Here's me with the fun judges:




So you see? I have been busy! I haven't had the chance to ride as much as I would have liked but I have been filling my head with plans and strategies and trying to meet the right people to help along the way.

I did receive some great words of encouragement from my sweet friend Tena Bastian today! She told me:"It's not the results that measures the success but rather the effort you put forth." I really liked that! I think it might make a good tattoo! :) Maybe...

Until I write again-stay motivated and "get that pony rode" as Templeton Thompson's song goes...

Mean Girls and Fractured Toes

Remember my last blog entry on "Balance"? Well that also means balancing the good with the bad! Since my last entry I have worked the Hydra Bull twice with Hayden and have managed to ride him a only handful of times in between.

On the night of the second I was starting to feel "blah" with a sinus infection.By the following Wednesday night I was on a Z-Pack that made feel even sicker.Plus the night before,Hayden decided to spook and do the splits on to my toes in the concrete hallway! My toes were so pretty! I might add that you don't know how much you use your toes while riding (especially in the stops)until it hurts very much badly when you do! WOW! But all is well and I think my toes are maybe only fractured. But enough negativity!

So let me tell you about our Hydrabull runs! The week before last (sorry no pics!) we managed to do 4 runs. He got better and better each time and the 4th go I even went to one hand for the last couple of turns! It felt great! Just before we went in for that last go I had been loping him around working on trying to get comfortable riding him in one hand. He did awesome! Head was down, and he was relaxed and stopping nicely on his hind end. Probably the best he's felt at the lope to me!I think I was more excited about the loping in one hand than I was with his Hydrabull work!

The way we've been working with 8-10 riders is everyone works the Hydrabull 5-10 minutes each time and going 3-5 times.We all go in the same order each time.I wish I could watch all the gos of everybody but even standing on the fence off of Hayden's back, he would get stiff before my go.So I try and watch at least one of everybody's just to be supportive and try and learn new things.

There were no pictures taken of my practice session from the 2nd but this last Wednesday night my dear (non horsey) hubby joined Miss Dee,Miss Lisa and I for the evening and took pics. He did a heck of a job!

This week I tried a new strategy. I warmed him up longer before our first go which Steve lets us go slow for. He was more settled and his stops were great! After Steve told us to quit,I would get off of him (which I have been doing all along) and watch the person who goes after me. Then I would get back on him and walk him out then work him on bending and flexing,stops,90 degree and 180 degree turns. When the person that goes just before me is starting their go,I lope and add a few stops.My new strategy seemed to work well! We had a pretty decent 2nd run but our 3rd run was super fantastic! Hayden was stopping so hard he was throwing dirt onto Steve in the Hydrabull! He was doing most of it himself and the most I had to do was lift his inside shoulder up to remind him he had to back up first before turning.Even that only had to be done a few times and when Steve bumped the speed up a notch, Hayden was more ready than I was! He felt awesome! When Steve said that was good and probably the best he's seen Hayden do,we stopped for the night on 3 runs! Made hubby happy since that meant leaving an hour earlier (9pm) than I usually did!






Remember I mentioned earlier that you have to balance the good with the bad? Well that translates around here into that I need to ride my other gelding,a 4 yr. old APHA gelding at times. He's really not a bad horse.In fact he's pretty good considering he really doesn't have that many hours under saddle.But he's not as fun to ride as Hayden is,so I don't ride him as much! So when I do ride him,usually just on trail rides,he will resist doing basic things like going down a hill or up a hill or into water.I know with more time and practice he'll be great but I am so focused on Hayden that it's hard for me to switch gears and ride this "other" horse.I know-poor poor pitiful me! I hear you playing your violin!

On Thursday I rode him ("BullsEye" aka Sharp Shootin Peppy) with some wonderful women at the Magnolia Branch Wildlife Reserve in Atmore,AL. I should have ridden Hayden since he's just been schooling and working in the arena but he'll get his trail time next month at an AQHA ride!


So what have I learned these last few weeks?
1.) Work my horse smarter-NOT harder!
2.) Mean girls suck!
3.) A supportive husband is gold!
4.) Not everyone is going to like you or support you but for every person who tries to pull you down,there are at least 2 others who who will lift you up!

This quote came to my attention this week and it seemed fitting although I am not sure who said it:
The road to success is not straight. There's a curve called failure, a loop called confusion, speed bumps called friends, red lights called enemies, caution lights called family. You will have flats called jobs. But if you have a spare called determination, an engine called perseverance, insurance called faith, a driver called Almighty GOD, you will make it to a place called SUCCESS.

Let's Talk About Balance

I'm not talking about balance in the saddle(although that IS important!)I am talking about balance of LIFE!

At one point in time, all I wanted to do was horses! I thought if I could just be around horses day in and day out that life would be perfect!

When I graduated college and finally left the "loveliest village on the plains" aka Auburn University, I went to work for Bartlett Ranch in Montgomery,AL. As a single girl,I absolutely LOVED working there!I got up at the crack of dawn and went out to feed all the horses,cleaned stalls,worked with the weanlings and yearlings,helped with the AI process of breeding mares, and just did general ranch stuff!I got to bed late, was paid nearly nothing but I was in heaven!

The short version of what came next is best described as "fell in love with a non horsey guy and got married and started a family." Suddenly there was more to life than horses! Who knew? There was traveling for a non horsey job,vacations not surrounded by horse activities and hanging out with people that generally didn't know the difference between each end of the horse!

Somewhere in the lifestyle change, horses became almost a challenge to do at all! Not because I didn't have support! On the contrary I had A LOT of support! It came in the form of "Sure! Buy that horse if you think you can make money on it!" At one point in the last 8 years we had at least one child and owned 6-8 horses as well as boarding others! Then soon we had 2 boys and several horses! It was crazy! Not to mention I was spending all my time cleaning stalls and all my money feeding them! Not having any energy to actually ENJOY them! Something had to change! My scale was tilted all the way to one side and I was NOT happy! I had no time for anything and no energy to do anything anyways!My balance of LIFE was WAY off KILTER!

So one day, my dear,sweet husband came to the conclusion that horses,no matter who owned them, were a lot of work! Years later I finally came to that same conclusion!
When I did, I decided it was just as easy to take care of a barn full of horses that I DIDN'T own as it was to own them! Actually it was easier since boarded horses didn't HAVE to be RIDDEN by ME or GROOMED by ME or best yet PAID FOR by ME! And with finally selling all but 3 perfect geldings, I could finally afford to DO things with my own horses as well as have the energy to do them! The scale of LIFE or at least barn life was starting to finally balance out!

With being married to a non horsey husband (NHH) and having two kids,comes activities that DO NOT revolve around horses. There are beach trips,going out to eat,church life,going to concerts,and just general low key everyday family life that take up time.If I CHOSE to not recognize this and instead say:"Ya'll have fun! I have a horse to ride or a show to go to or some other horse thing I have to go to," I would not only be pretty lonely but I'd end up dividing myself away from my family and undoubtedly end up in divorce! Of course the upside (maybe the ONLY upside) to that might be that I would end up being a decent rider and considered the top of my field.

The picture I just painted is scary for me to even think about! I know a few people that their lives DO revolve around the horse business.Their lives were/are lead from the barn or the truck on the way to a horse show.No non-horsey vacations were taken, no lessons were canceled, no horse shows were skipped in hopes to spend quality family time together.Meanwhile they missed out on their kids lives and the life they could have had with their spouse. The marriage,if it's still in tact,is full of resentment,anger, and lost hope.Good times. Of course they ARE at the top of their field. They're looked upon and regarded with the utmost respect by their peers and even some clients.When I think of what these friends have missed out on it makes me sad for them.

By witnessing such imbalanced lives, it has made me strongly focus on the balance of my life! I love God,my family,horses,friends and photography.I love to read,learn,taste and discover new things(especially about myself!)I have goals with my horses but even more so I have a goal to be a huge part of my children's lives and be the spouse my husband deserves and needs!In order to be "ALL THAT" I have to learn how to divide my attention and energy accordingly.When I am with my boys, I give them my full attention. The same goes when I am with my husband, horses, and friends.

I have learned too that LIFE is composed of MOMENTS.Sounds cliche I know but since I have "decided" to truly enjoy each moment, I get out of my comfort zone and try new things,I find JOY in little things like getting my boys dressed or even saddling up my horse.(Still looking for the joy in doing things like unloading the dishwasher!)

So with today's blog-if the only thing you get out of it is:"Emily is more than just a cowgirl", YOU ARE missing it! GET OUT THERE AND ENJOY ALL LIFE HAS TO OFFER! ENJOY THE LITTLE MOMENTS! And yes balance is more than keeping a leg on each side of your horse!

Below are some of the things I am super glad I DIDN'T MISS!

I Have A New Friend!

How many of you know what a Hydrabull is? Don't worry-I didn't know what it was either until yesterday! But OMG! It is my new best friend that is going to help me and Hayden accomplish our goals!

Briefly,a Hydrabull is a 3-wheeled cow simulator that moves like a zero-turn lawn mower! It can go forward and back and move like a cow with great speed and agility! It saves trainers big bucks too as they don't have to spend as much money on fresh cows! Also it helps young and novice riders go slower so they can "get it" faster!

Luckily, Steve Foley has one and was kind enough to suggest a group lesson for all who wanted to better themselves and their horses for cutting,penning and other cow events!We had 5 of us working it one at a time for about 4-6 minutes a piece. For several of us it was the first time our horses had ever seen such a device! But each run we did,our horses got better and better each time! It was fun to watch everyone have a go and to hang out with folks that have similar goals with their horses.I can't wait to do this every week as my lesson! Plus to be able to see other's progress as well is rewarding too!

I told Steve before we started that my goal last night was to ride Hayden in the bridle (vs. the snaffle)and to keep him soft and relaxed.If that meant just walking the whole night then so be it. But as it turned out, in our first go he was loping after the Hydrabull and was relaxed and doing great!

By our 4th time he felt so confident and relaxed that I was giddy! He far exceeded my expectations of him especially in the bridle! At one point I felt like I could have ridden in one hand! Not "drop my hand" one hand but still! I tried for a few seconds but had no idea what to do with my free hand! Pushing on the horn didn't feel natural yet either so I just concentrated on keeping my hands together and low on his withers. Seemed to work! He was stopping on his own except for me cuing with my seat and legs. It was an awesome feeling!

Here are some pics that Miss Shannon took! Thanks Shannon!






For more info on the Hydrabull:http://www.hydrabull.com/

It's still pretty hot here in Alabama even in the evenings. We all had small coolers filled with water,sodas and ice.On the way to the arena from the trailer I put my little 6 pack cooler over my horn and Hayden carried it no problem. By 9:30p.m when we were headed back to the trailer I put the cooler back over the horn.Well the ice had somewhat melted and there was more room in the cooler minus 2 waters so it was making a racket as well as dripping water all over Hayden! I am not sure what he hated worse-the water or the noise but he went ballistic on me! He was headed to highway if I had let loose of the reins! I was talking to him,telling him "Easy", but it wasn't until I said,"Hayden-WHOA!" that he stopped and planted his feet! Thank you Karen Jones! I have been working on him with his ground tying a little bit (not like I should mind you) but I have been trying to get in the habit of saying,"Hayden Whoa.Hayden Walk.Hayden Ok.",etc. so that he'll get it. Well last night was a good test!He got it and it saved our tail!

Happy riding everyone! Keep reaching for those goals!